Network News

Get the Morning Fix and the new Afternoon Fix delivered to your inbox or mobile device for easy access to the top political stories of the day. All you need is one click to get Morning Fix and Afternoon Fix!

Democratic group targets tea party candidates

1. Craig Varoga, a longtime Democratic political operative, has formed a group -- known as Patriot Majority PAC -- with the specific goal of keeping tea party candidates out of office.

"Americans need to confront the dangerous ideas of the tea party movement head on, without any fear, before they gain any additional traction in the legislative process or the 2010 elections," said Varoga, who managed former Iowa governor Tom Vilsack's 2008 presidential run.

The idea behind Patriot Majority PAC is to pick 12 to 15 races where tea party-affiliated candidates are running then launch a barrage of television and radio ads (as well as online targeting) to keep them from winning. The funding, according to Varoga, will come entirely from individuals and thanks to a ruling in U.S. District Court last week the group will be able to expressly advocate for the defeat of candidates.

(Varoga also hopes to establish Patriot Majority as a clearinghouse for information -- on the negative side of the ledger -- about the tea party movement. "We are asking all Americans to join us and oppose the extreme tactics of the tea party and the dangerous ideas behind them," he said.)

While Varoga has yet to identify his targeted races, the first real test of the power of the tea party movement will come May 18 in Kentucky where ophthalmologist Rand Paul, a favorite of the tea party crowd, will face off against Secretary of State Trey Grayson who has the support -- whether public or implicit -- of the vast majority of establishment Republicans in Kentucky and nationally.

A victory by Paul would give further legitimacy to the power of the Tea Party movement -- and could potentially endanger other Republican incumbents or quasi incumbents like Grayson. It could also jeopardize Republicans' chances of picking up a bundle of seats in the House and Senate this fall.

ALSO READ: Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin kicked off a nationwide tea party bus tour at a rally in Searchlight, Nev. on Saturday attended by roughly 10,000 like-minded folks.

2. A new Washington Post poll released over the weekend provides a mixed bag of data on the recently passed health care bill.

Here are five facts you need to know from the poll: 1) Forty-eight percent of those tested approve of how President Obama has handled health care while 49 percent disapprove, a slight improvement for the commander in chief from an early February poll when he stood at 43 approve/53 disapprove.

2) Democrats in Congress are still more trusted (47 percent) to handle the issue of health care than Republicans (34 percent). That gap has narrowed since the February poll, however, when Democrats stood at 56 percent to just 29 percent for Republicans.

3) Support (and opposition) for the bill has barely changed from early February until now. Then 46 percent supported the proposed changes in the bill while 49 percent opposed them; today it's 46 percent support, 50 percent oppose.

4) An enthusiasm (or is it an anger) gap still exists. While 15 percent said they were enthusiastic about the changes to the health are system, 26 percent said they were angry about them.

5) President Obama's messaging that people who like their health insurance can keep it as is doesn't appear to be getting through to the public. Six in ten believe that the bill passed by Congress will require all individuals to make changes to their health care.

Just 34 percent of voters in the Sunshine State supported the health care bill while 54 percent opposed it, according to a survey by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research for the St. Petersburg Times. Most troubling for Democrats is that two-thirds of senior citizens (age 65 and older) oppose the law while just 25 percent support it; seniors are typically the most reliable of voters in low-turnout midterm elections and, as such, are heavily targeted by both parties. More than six in ten independents, another critical swing voting bloc, opposed the measure as well.

The results of the Florida poll are not insignificant given both its primacy as a 2012 presidential battleground and as a central front in the 2010 midterms. The state is hosting open seat races for governor and U.S. Senate and Republicans are targeting Democratic Reps. Suzanne Kosmas, Allen Boyd, Ron Klein and Alan Grayson for defeat.

The numbers in the poll also looked bad for Sen. Bill Nelson (D) who, luckily for him, won't have to stand for re-election until 2012. Nelson's popularity ratings have plummeted since he won easily in 2006 and he lost hypothetical head to head matchups against the likes of Gov. Charlie Crist as well as former state House Speaker Marco Rubio and former governor Jeb Bush.

Democrats have made significant gains in Florida over the past two elections -- Obama carried it in 2008 while Grayson and Kosmas ousted Republican incumbents -- but these numbers suggest the pendulum has swung (in a major way) back to Republicans.

4. Former Iowa governor Terry Branstad (R) is launching the first ad of his attempt to reclaim the office he held for four terms in the 1980s and 1990s, a 60-second commercial that touts his past record as an indicator of future results.

"Terry Branstad has done this before and he can do it again," says one woman featured in the ad, which was produced by Republican media consultant Kim Alfano Doyle; another woman asserts that "Iowa's in trouble and he is the only man with the knowledge and the skill to fix our problems."

Branstad, who served as governor of the Hawkeye State from 1982 until 1998, is a somewhat odd fit for the outsider environment prevalent in the body politic at the moment but polling suggests he is heavy favorite in not only the June 8 primary but also the general election race against embattled Gov. Chet Culver (D).

If Branstad wins, he will immediately (if not sooner) be courted by every Reublican taking a serious look at the 2012 Republican field -- given Iowa's almost-certain place at the front of the nomination calendar. Back in 1996, Branstad endorsed then Kansas Sen. Bob Dole who edged out Pat Buchanan for first place in the caucuses.

5. After a near-miss against controversial Rep. Michele Bachmann (R) in 2008, Democrats are quickly unifying behind state Sen. Tarryl Clark as their preferred nominee this November.

Clark, who has held a state Senate district since 2005, is being touted in some circles as the antidote to Bachmann whose strong public comments about President Obama and the health care debate inflamed the liberal left and made her a major target for defeat.

While Clark appears to be the strongest candidate Democrats have fielded against Bachmann who won the seat in 2006, the Republican incumbent still has several built-in advantages.

First, the suburban Twin Cities district is solidly Republican with Sen. John McCain having won it by eight points in 2008 even as he was losing the state by 10. Second, the district is entirely covered by the somewhat costly Minneapolis-Saint Paul media market, making getting known district-wide a pricey challenge. Bachmann had more than $1 million on hand at the end of 2009 while Clark had just $389,000.

For record, I also referred to Nixon as "President" even though he had resigned (same with President Clinton even though he was impeached). Now, if Obama would only prove he is a natural-born citizen, then I would happily refer to him as "President" too.

Noacoler: My race has never been a majority--maybe that IS why we think differently :-) And my gender has always been (at least in the US where women are 51% of the population). And I have never, ever thought of my gender as a pre-existing condition (wasn't that a silly thing for the Speaker to say...of course she is a generation older then I am , so maybe not).

Truth is I don't think racially at all or else I think racially all the time but it doesn't matter to me. I know that might seem strange but my family is multi-generationally multi-racial i.e. we are all mixed up (it's a joke, folks really and one my family has been telling for three generations).....and yes, it might be a weak retort but I actually haven't seen any video on the great walk from Congress to their offices.

Again, point of our discussion was whether or not "these people" (TEA party) are a cult...

wiki says: "Cult pejoratively refers to a group whose beliefs or practices could be, reasonably or unreasonably, considered strange." Don't think the TEA party is "strange"--angry, vociferous and ticked off but not "strange".

"The modern definition of a...cult is any group which employs mind control and deceptive recruiting techniques. In other words cults trick people into joining and coerce them into staying. This is the definition that most people would agree with. Except the cults themselves of course!"

I doubt those currently involved with the TEA Party are being coerced to stay.

Oooh, wait, it might apply to the two parties currently in power in Congress, a lot of coercing going on there---maybe we already have cults running the govt LOL.

You can always recognize a JakeD post by the way he reverently refers to that beehive beeyotch as "Gov." Palin. You'd think she hadn't quit midway through her term or something.

@mil1: the racist catcalls were caught on videotape, and you're trying to pull an epistemology dodge? What a weak rebuttal. I have no reason to believe the Congressmen and news media are trying to make the teabaggers look bad, and anyway nobody needs to, the truth is plenty ugly enough.

By 2012 there will be fewer non-Hispanic white babies born than all others combined. Not long after our race will be in the minority in the USA. A lot of people can't handle that. I happen to not be one of them. Can't wsay the same for your beloved baggers. Good day.

See, you believe the media (and the congressional staff) that something was said. I believe that there's a tunnel between the congressional offices and Congress and wonder why any of the congresspeople didn't take it....I won't exactly say they weren't be truthful but I will say that they were being provocative--been a protester, know how to get a response....even if the crowd wasn't counting on making it.

And this is where we part in thought because I find it difficult to believe those already known to lie (and yes, I do mean our congresspeople) and those who weren't there yet feel free to report as if they were.

Gov. Palin endorsed three more Republicans running for the House today:

1) Major Vaughn Ward, a fourth-generation Idaho native who grew up on his family’s farm in Shoshone and is running in Idaho’s 1st District.

2) Captain Adam Kinzinger, a decorated special-operations pilot who flew combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. Adam is running for Illinois’ 11th Congressional District against a freshman incumbent congresswoman who seemed to pull a bait and switch on voters to get elected. She sounded like a blue dog on the campaign trail, but didn’t vote like one in Washington. Instead, she voted in lockstep with the Pelosi agenda – on Obamacare, the stimulus, cap-and-tax – and the list goes on. She’s part of the reason for Congress’ 11% approval rating. Adam is a strong fiscal conservative with a proven track record as a reformer from his years serving on his local county board. Adam started out in local office, and, like many of us, believes in making government more accountable to the people. When you serve in local office, your constituents truly are your neighbors. Adam understands this, and I know that he will listen to his constituents and work for us, not against us, in Washington.

3) Lt. Col. Allen West, running in Florida's 22nd District, a decorated war hero who’s served with distinction in combat zones in Iraq and Afghanistan.

yeah, mil1, decent moderate people who don't have anything to say in censure when the decent moderate person standing right next to them calls the president a niggger, nor when the decent moderate person a few decent moderate people over spits on a Congressman.

Noacoler: A cult? Sometimes it's fun to be dramatic but the TEA party isn't a party much less a cult.

They would like someone to pay attention--their political party (mostly Republican but not all) isn't.

And I'll give you angry but you really should go out to one of these "protests"; they are not violent.

Violent protests were the ones I attended in the 60s--where we got instructions on how to handle teargas--put a bandana with vasoline on and wear gloves to pick up the cansier and lob it back into the police line...that is violent protest.

These people are polite, bring their kids and pick up the trash when they are done.

Sorry I don't believe the media when they say that a cut gas grill line is from a TEA party attendee---I am not saying there aren't "lurkers" online with a different agenda, just saying I have met my TEA party neighbors and they aren't who the media so fervently wants to be violent (and perhaps the Democrats too).

Being passionate and/or angry doesn't make for violence though check Iran or the US in the 1960s---it can bring violence to it.

@mil1: from all I've read about the TEA people they're a lot more basic than "grass roots"; I would some them up with a few bullet points

(1) they're really angry

(2) they feel betrayed by just about everyone

(3) they're really angry

(4) the fact of a black President and female Speaker at the same time as US demographics shift away from all-white has them in a panic

(5) they're really really angry

I don't see a political movement, I see something more like a cult, a violent one. They're pushing an essentially incoherent ideology based on misperceptions and lies (e.g. that Obama has raised their taxes) and moving the Republican Party ever further out into the margins.

Have to take your word on right-wing opposition to the PA. But it's not just WaPo, the whole press has to be in on the conspiracy. Seems to me that right-wingers just loved it.

Actually there are plenty on the right who are against the Patriot Act and any renewal of it--you just don't hear it here in WAPO. And for the record, I am not with the TEA Party but I have gone to meetings and listened. They are very grass roots, so much so that it's difficult to see it evolving into a party with a party machine and money behind it.

Don't get confused with what you see closer to WASH DC and that can get "bleed off" from more formal parties---not just Republicans but also Libertarians etc. (Libertarians have worked for over 40 years to put candidates on a ballot and have had little success...the TEA Party is even more disorganized.)

Democrats want to perform slight of hand because they would like to actually be the party of persecution (it plays so much better). However, after the health care "win" (I personally think of it as a Pyrrhic victory) they really can't keep considering themselves the party of persecution--unless they honestly believe they aren't a majority.

So, where were these uber-patriots when the Patriot Act was shove down our throats by the post 9-11 opportunists?
Surely the loss of habeas corpus should matter as much, or more, to anyone who claims to be a true patriot than whether health care is provided to poor people?
Where was all this indignant patriotism when our rights and liberties were truly at stake? ...

Exactly the point I make to all who say the Tea Baggers are grass-roots. Funny how you weren't fed up when we've spent almost $1T on "nation-building" in Iraq, on Medicare Advantage, on record deficits. WHERE WERE YOU?

I think the fear of the Tea Party winning is enough to get Dem establishment worried. They benefit as much as the Repubs do from our silly two party system. I'd be much happier if these two behemoths were broken up in 3-4 parties each rather than this over reaching circus tent that they claim to have. The problem is the Dems continue to fight amongst each other and the Repubs put their "differences" aside and slip on their jack boots once they hit office.

The two party system leaves us with poor choices. Coalitions have to work together.....to compromise......something the Republicans apparently are unable to do with their primitive reptilian brains. This Democratic strategist knows this.

from reading your clip of Goldwater and Johnson I am unsure if you lived through the period. I did (though a young teen). Johnson won on these points:

JFK had just died (two years before)and there was a huge sympathy vote (I know as my parents were Democrats).

Johnson had extremely slick ads; particularly the one of the little girl pulling the pedals off a daisy as a count down to a nuclear explosion was superimposed over it. In 1964 very few knew anything about Viet Nam (except maybe a classmate of mine who brought in a South Viet Namese flag with human blood on it for show and tell) or even where it was (opposition to the war didn't build up to a large section of US society until 1966 and later) so there was no good way to figure out how LBJ would do with "a war on" because no really knew about this "police action" (and yes, it was said at the time that it would involve a smaller force than what we used in Korea).

So it had very little to do with John Bircher's who quite frankly are nothing like tea partiers--I know as the "Birchers" tried to recuit me in high school--the daughter of a labor unionist family (LOL).

The Tea Party isn't extreme, it's exasperated, fed up and part of the 50 percent quoted above that just are tired of hearing this:

"Support (and opposition) for the bill has barely changed from early February until now. Then 46 percent supported the proposed changes in the bill while 49 percent opposed them; today it's 46 percent support, 50 percent oppose."

So support against the law has actually INCREASED but our kind author above has made it sound like nothing special that 1/2 the country is AGAINST this law and find it's passage troubling.

they believe in the law of the land, our constitution. How dangerous is that? You wouldn't be here if not for it."
So, where were these uber-patriots when the Patriot Act was shove down our throats by the post 9-11 opportunists?
Surely the loss of habeas corpus should matter as much, or more, to anyone who claims to be a true patriot than whether health care is provided to poor people?
Where was all this indignant patriotism when our rights and liberties were truly at stake?
And how on Earth did the wingnut TV and radio talkers manage to fool you 'baggers into thinking that by extending health care benefits to millions, your personal rights and liberties were at stake?
Where were you when Bush called the Constitution a "GD piece of paper?"
Posted by: JEP07 | March 29, 2010 11:19 AM | Report abuse

Yes, they just LOVE their Constitution, don’t they? Or, their version of it..

Except when it’s inconvenient and the “Commander-in-Chief” tells them to ignore it.

Remember how they supported unquestioningly the arguments to start a war with a nation that did not even attack us, or have a hand in attacking us, and verifiably did not have WMDs? And how they proclaimed the necessity for a “Patriot” Act, that enabled the Federal Government, at all other times hated and despised (except during a rabid, right-wing administration), to implement processes for disappearing anyone, “extraordinarily renditioning” them (kidnap, in layman’s terms), and either torturing those citizens ourselves or sending them to countries that would do it for us? (One has to wonder at the logic: rather than attacking Saddam, you wonder why the Bushies didn’t just sub-contract our torture needs out to him, maybe thru a contract with Haliburton or Blackwater. He was everything the Bushies loved.) And when the Commander-in-Chief showed up at select locations, facing only “invited” Americans, and arresting any protestor within a quarter mile, they begged him to tell them “what THEY could do to help him.” Imagine! Help THAT! And they actually meant it!

There are none so pliable, so gullible, and so evil, as those who need to be lied to, and assured their ignorance is truth, and their ugliness, “righteousness.”

And now these same people who begged to actually help THAT government now hate THIS government.

And they speak of guns, and “revolution,” and “patriotism.”

What they are is guilty of making terroristic threats towards fellow citizens, making real threats against a duly elected government, and planning sedition.

We shouldn’t be running against them.

We should be demanding that the CIA and the FBI detain and arrest them for treason.

I was asking "jlhare1" why no condemnation as to REPUBLICAN headquarters getting bricks smashed through their windows, or (horror of horrors) bobbywc using the word "target" against GOP candidates, and whether he/she saw Patrick Kennedy's rant on the House floor.

Why no condemnation from you as to REPUBLICAN headquarters getting bricks smashed through their windows, or (horror or horrors) bobbywc using the word "target" against GOP candidates?! Did you see Patrick Kennedy's rant on the House floor?

Hypocrite.

Posted by: JakeD2 | March 29, 2010 1:18 PM | Report abuse

________________________________________

so, Jake D2:

Are you advocating violence against Democratic Members of Congress? If you are, I'd like to report you to the FBI and the shack in the backwoods of VA where you keep your guns and young boys...

"...In her speech at the rally, Sarah Palin of course paid homage to the Constitution. “Our vision for America is anchored in time-tested truths that the government that governs least governs best, that the Constitution provides the path to a more perfect union — it’s the Constitution,” she exclaimed. And so it’s extremely puzzling that Palin introduced this new attack line against President Obama yesterday:
In these volatile times when we are a nation at war, now more than ever is when we need a commander-in-chief, not a constitutional law professor lecturing us from a lectern."

She subscribes to the notion: They govern best who govern least(?)

Apparently, she thinks that her experience and governing style in Alaska should be emulated everywhere: get elected, sell out your state’s resources for a song (while spreading the wealth around in a “socialist” payoff), use your position to line your own pocket and offer contracts for criminal payoffs from contractors, and then quit not even halfway thru your term in order to parlay “celebrity” status into a book and lecture-circuit deal.

With the 24 hours "fixed news" like Fox, Americans are getting saturated with lies, insinuations, and opinions instead of factual news. Most people don't take time to research information but if they hear something repetitiously, they begin to believe it, no matter how far fetched it might be. That is why so many people actually believe all the vacuous information the Beck, Palin, Hannity and fox news propaganda machine throws out constantly. They also appeal to the base fears of the public and then keep stoking the flames. Things have become so bad with the news that it takes people like Jon Stewart and other comedians to actually bring the real facts to light! There may be many in the Tea Party who genuinely may have concerns about the country, but it appears there are those who are using it as an umbrella to promote divisions, and racial tensions. If the Tea Party movement is really what it says it is, and really care about America, then they need to start distancing themselves from the fringe elements who are part of it, and from the hateful rhetoric of Palin and others like her. So its time to hold their feet to the fire.

"DwightCollins:
I take Mr. Cillizza seriously. Do you also contend that his former boss, Charlie Cook, is useless? You must not follow politics close enough.
Posted by: JakeD2 | March 29, 2010 11:30 AM | Report abuse"

do you wipe the brown off cillizza's nose...
because he is a dem hack, of that there is no doubt...

Wikipedia simply states common knowledge (especially among those who already know the Terminiello case by name). Since we are back to citing EVERYTHING again, that latest from drindl can be found here:

* In 1964, Barry Goldwater said: "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice."
* Party's association with extremists hurt the GOP in that election, Julian Zelizer says
* He says extreme reactions to passage of health care bill pose danger for Republicans
* Zelizer says Democrats have extreme fringe but have taken pains to dissociate from far left

Editor's note: Julian E. Zelizer is a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School. His new book is "Arsenal of Democracy: The Politics of National Security: From World War II to the War on Terrorism," published by Basic Books. Zelizer writes widely about current events.

Princeton, New Jersey (CNN) -- As he stood before the delegates of the 1964 Republican Convention in San Francisco, California, Arizona Sen. Barry Goldwater, the party's presidential nominee, said, "I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."

The delegates, who had booed New York Gov. Nelson Rockefeller when he called for the party to respect moderation, were thrilled. Many of Goldwater's supporters were determined to push their party toward the right wing of the political spectrum. They felt that their party leaders, including President Eisenhower, had simply offered a watered-down version of the New Deal.

Yet Goldwater soon learned that extremism could quickly become a political vice, particularly to a party seeking to regain control of the White House. The right wing of the Republican Party in the early 1960s inhabited a world that included extremist organizations, such as the John Birch Society, that railed against communism.

The Birchers developed a huge network of local activists, reaching more than 100,000 members. They published pamphlets and books and threw their support behind local candidates. Some mainstream conservative outlets depended on supporters who were in these groups. Many right-wing organizations in the South were opponents of civil rights and advocates of racial segregation.

During the fall campaign of 1964, President Johnson devastated Goldwater and his running mate, William Miller, by painting them as an extremist duo with close ties to military hawks and racist demagogues."

Why is there a Democratic operative trying to deflate tea party candidates in 15 races?

Let the tea party clowns take GOP spaces. Let it frighten the party establishment so they can run further to the right. It's a sure fire way to keep the Dem majorities in good standing. Sure the "scorched earth" Repubs won't vote for a Democrat even if their preferred candidate didn't make it through the primary, but Independents aren't going to be able to stomach the outright ugly and stupid behavior of the average Tea Party rally.

If it's between the tea Party and GOP in Kentucky then the people there have already lost. Let'em slit their own throats.......

United States Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson "appreciated" the Constitution too, even though he argued that it is not a suicide pact. Keep in mind, in that case, anti-Semitic, pro-Nazi rantings at a rally that actually did incite a riot were still held as PROTECTED under the First Amendment. In 2006, Judge Richard Posner of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and professor at the University of Chicago Law School, wrote a book called "Not a Suicide Pact: The Constitution in a Time of National Emergency." In the book, Posner argues that facing terrorism and the threat of WMDs, the scope of Constitutional rights must be adjusted in a pragmatic but rational manner. Using cost-benefit analysis to balance the harm new security measures inflict on personal liberty against the increased security those measures provide, Posner comes down, in most but not quite all respects, on the side of increased government power.

@JoeT: you are presuming that people are going to take note of actual facts and compare the facts to their memories of lies told by Republicans. That's be great but I don't see a lot of evidence of this sort of sober, rational thought among voters.

We have Republicans lying their heads off, more and more and more since 1980, and since they keep getting away with it, with a cowed or sycophantic press unwilling to call out the record, they no longer bother to even try to hide the lies. I mean, we have prominent Republicans now claiming that the 9/11 attacks took place under the Clinton presidency and the economy was in great shape until the day President Obama took office.

This isn't Teapot Dome we're talking about here, this is recent living memory, and it would appear that substantial numbers are willing to go along.

I think this country is not only in decline, but well down the slope and accelerating. Just look at the conservative posters here .. all mental cases.

username: any connection between Teabaggers and an appreciation of the Constitution is entirely accidental.

37th&O: all of your facts about health reform and corporations are utter nonsense. small businesses get an immediate tax incentive to provide care. large companies should see decreases in premiums, and will certainly see a lessening of the upward spiral. small employers with employees who are not perfectly healthy will see decreases in premiums because the underwriting corridor is narrowed. Congress is summoning Deere, Caterpilar and others to explain their absurd claims that reform will cost them, and the claims will likely be exposed as political stunts by management.

If 60% of the folks think that they have to change their health insurance under reform, then imagine what the polls will look like when all of them figure out that they were wrong, and that it was the Republicans who fed them that lie.

And since most of the folks who don't have insurance want it, they aren't offended (or affected) by the mandate (because they will now be able to afford to buy the insurance they want).

eventually, people will realize that the whole bill is about roughly 10% of the population getting access to affordable health insurance, leaving the other 90% unaffected (or perhaps helped if rates go down or at least don't go up by as much as they would without reform). Republican hysteria will seem even more absurd then.

and if people ever realize that Obama's reform legislation is more moderate than Nixon's was, they will really wonder what has been going on.

For those wondering about the hysterical posts from 37thand0 about "sexual slurs," clearly absent from any posts in this thread or any other, the explanation is simple.

The person posting as 37thand0 is a druggy burnout. Nobody needs to come up with sexual slurs for the teabaggers any more than anyone needs to invent racist events around them. The reality of the tea party movement is plenty ugly all by itself, no embellishment required.

drindl-It is too late for the repukican party to disassociate itself from the Tea Party, the deed has been done. Is not the
repukican party responsible for whomever
stumps for a repukican candidate? Duuuuhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!! Remeber what I said,
rabid dogs? Yeah, regardless of all the
fanatical rantings of jake; smarmy rabid dogs, foaming at the mouth, contaminating all who associate.

'But extremism is there, and it has flared in the past few weeks. This kind of rhetoric will not produce long-term gains for the Republican Party. Realizing the threat, Republican leaders have begun to disassociate themselves from these elements of the movement.

Leaders from the Florida Tea Party said in a letter to President Obama that they stood in "stark opposition to any person using derogatory characterizations, threats of violence, or disparaging terms toward members of Congress or the president."

They must also avoid contradictory messages, such as the statement of House Minority Whip Eric Cantor, who accused Democrats of "fanning the flames" by using the incidents as a "political weapon." Cantor had a bullet fired at his campaign office after receiving anti-Semitic threats, but local police described the bullet as random gunfire not directed at his office."

For the record, I do condemn the bricks thrown through Cantor's window, as I do all violence. For the record also, though, it appears to have been anti-semitic in nature -- likely a white supremacist.

* In 1964, Barry Goldwater said: "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice."
* Party's association with extremists hurt the GOP in that election, Julian Zelizer says
* He says extreme reactions to passage of health care bill pose danger for Republicans
* Zelizer says Democrats have extreme fringe but have taken pains to dissociate from far left

Editor's note: Julian E. Zelizer is a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School. His new book is "Arsenal of Democracy: The Politics of National Security: From World War II to the War on Terrorism," published by Basic Books. Zelizer writes widely about current events.

Princeton, New Jersey (CNN) -- As he stood before the delegates of the 1964 Republican Convention in San Francisco, California, Arizona Sen. Barry Goldwater, the party's presidential nominee, said, "I would remind you that extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice. And let me remind you also that moderation in the pursuit of justice is no virtue."

The delegates, who had booed New York Gov. Nelson Rockefeller when he called for the party to respect moderation, were thrilled. Many of Goldwater's supporters were determined to push their party toward the right wing of the political spectrum. They felt that their party leaders, including President Eisenhower, had simply offered a watered-down version of the New Deal.

Yet Goldwater soon learned that extremism could quickly become a political vice, particularly to a party seeking to regain control of the White House. The right wing of the Republican Party in the early 1960s inhabited a world that included extremist organizations, such as the John Birch Society, that railed against communism.

The Birchers developed a huge network of local activists, reaching more than 100,000 members. They published pamphlets and books and threw their support behind local candidates. Some mainstream conservative outlets depended on supporters who were in these groups. Many right-wing organizations in the South were opponents of civil rights and advocates of racial segregation.

During the fall campaign of 1964, President Johnson devastated Goldwater and his running mate, William Miller, by painting them as an extremist duo with close ties to military hawks and racist demagogues."

Jake-you're a hoot-you take things so literally-if ya run with a repukican rabid dog you're likely to get close enough to get bit, at least nibbled on a little, you can be sure, a nibble causes the sme results.

The eight men and one woman are members of the "Hutaree," identified as an "anti-government extremist organization" in the indictment, and each faces three to five charges, including sedition, attempts to use weapons of mass destruction, teaching/demonstrating use of explosive materials and two counts of carrying weapons in relation to a crime of violence."

==

Not just right wing nutjobs but fundamentalist Christian ones at that.

Guys who read those blue books in dentists' waiting rooms and then Chick tracts and finally Tim LaHaye and got all amped up over the book of Revelations.

AKA "psychotics" worried about "the Antichrist."

we really need to end the diagnostic exemption for these people. Flying saucers or Jesus, a psychotic is a psychotic.

Rabid dogs-so called Christian militants against the law enforcement community all
arrested, thwarted in their demented attempt to kill-Norman Lavoon arrested by FBI for death threats against senator Cantor in Pennsylvania, same person who shot into this headquarters. Hope Caraboo
Barbie is happy.

The clown cabal that is running against harry reid is making for interesting reading:

A Nevada asphalt contractor who faces a legal challenge to his Tea Party of Nevada candidacy for U.S. Senate was hit Friday with felony theft and bad check charges in Las Vegas that allege he bounced a $5,000 business check last year.

Scott Ashjian is one of a record 22 candidates, including 12 Republicans, running for the seat held by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, who is seeking a fifth term.

Bernie Zadrowski, head of the Clark County district attorney's office bad check unit, said he would seek an arrest warrant Monday in Las Vegas Justice Court. Ashjian could face up to 14 years in state prison if convicted.

Records show Ashjian lost his state contractor’s license Wednesday after failing to appear for a disciplinary proceeding stemming from a complaint that he bounced a $981.82 check to a materials supplier last year.
[...]
Public documents on file with the Clark County Recorder show Ashjian also faced foreclosure on home loans totaling almost $1 million, owed a $200,000 Internal Revenue Service tax debt and faced city nuisance actions and liens alleging he failed to pay homeowners’ dues, a roofer, and his trash collector.'

"When the government accuses someone of terrorism it means that the person is a terrorist. Right? The indictment sounds pretty clear: we captured a bunch of religious fundamentalist extremists planning mass casualty attacks against America. Unlike, say, Jose Padilla or any of the clown car gangs whom Bush rounded up this team had the gear and the training to go operational (and kill a lot of people) within a month.

Rightwing antiterror doctrine clearly states that we must strip these “terrorists” (no such thing as alleged in the war on terror) naked and hang them in cold cages by the wrists with their arms tied behind their backs so that the tendons tear and the shoulder joint dislocates. We should waterboard them until they confess and give up their co-conspirators (the Inquisition found waterboarding almost 100% effective!). Without question these people should be held without any trial or access to habeas corpus petitions until the “war” against violent fundamentalist groups is over. At the very least we should shunt these guys into military tribunals where the rules have been rigged to ensure a conviction."

Running with rabid dogs is not how one contracts rabies (in fact, 97% of the cases are from actual bites). The rabies virus is the type species of the Lyssavirus genus, which encompasses other similar viruses. Lyssaviruses have helical symmetry, with a length of about 180 nm and a cross-sectional diameter of about 75 nm. These viruses are enveloped and have a single stranded RNA genome with negative-sense. The genetic information is packaged as a ribonucleoprotein complex in which RNA is tightly bound by the viral nucleoprotein. The RNA genome of the virus encodes five genes whose order is highly conserved: nucleoprotein (N), phospholipid (L), matrix protein (M), glycoprotein (G) and the viral RNA polymerase (L).

From the point of entry, the virus is neurotropic, traveling quickly along the neural pathways into the central nervous system (CNS), and then further into other organs. The salivary glands receive high concentrations of the virus thus allowing further transmission.

September 28 is World Rabies Day, which promotes information on, and prevention and elimination of the disease. I hope that some of this information helps.

rohitcuny-It is a long established fact-guilt by association is exactly that. No matter what they say, or how SHE says it,
you run with rabid dogs, you get rabies, and foam at the mouth, and contaminate
all who come near you. NO THANKS!!

Sedition. I'm glad they're finally calling it for what it is. Sedition, treason. People talking about overthrowing the government are treacherous traitors, period.

'Detroit -- Nine members of a militia group arrested in Michigan, Indiana, Illinois and Ohio were planning to "levy war" against the United States and "oppose by force" the nation's government, according to an indictment released this morning in U.S. District Court in Detroit.

The eight men and one woman are members of the "Hutaree," identified as an "anti-government extremist organization" in the indictment, and each faces three to five charges, including sedition, attempts to use weapons of mass destruction, teaching/demonstrating use of explosive materials and two counts of carrying weapons in relation to a crime of violence."

Why no condemnation from you as to REPUBLICAN headquarters getting bricks smashed through their windows, or (horror or horrors) bobbywc using the word "target" against GOP candidates?! Did you see Patrick Kennedy's rant on the House floor?

You are the one upset about my note that the Constitution is not a suicide pact (I doubt that you could say the Supreme Court Justice who wrote those words was not "remotely interested in calming thngs down" either). I was simply trying to help you out, in that the Declaration of Independence was a suicide pact, so I thought a little levity would help. Either way, I guess my attempts didn't work. Oh well ...

I'm fine. You seem much more poised to pounce than I do, and my contentions aren;t based on my personal delusions.

You aren't remotely interested in calming thngs down, you know when people start takng those deep breaths and let their brains kick in where their groins were ruling before, it does not bode well for republicans in general and extremists in particular.

The less inflammation there is, the more likely people will see through the hyperbole generated by the HC insurance monopolists and their wholly owned MSM.

Calm minds tend to reason much better than enraged ones. Which is why people like you continue to provoke the teabagging wingnut base, even they would mellow if they stopped long enough to calm down. I can't imagine why you would want that, it takes away the only tool remaining in your fading arsenal of provocation.

RE; Healthcar reform;
"it is also true that somewhat more Americans oppose it."

"Somewhat???"

...what ever hapened to "the vast majority" oppose it?

The lie softens. But it is still a lie. Based on liberal dissatisfaction with the weakness of the bill, not conservative opposition to it as a whole. It is simply disingenuous to put those disparate opinions in the same vague queston, even though together it constitutes a majority.

And every day the bill becomes more exposed for what it really is, the more people will embrace it. On both sides. Why do you think the R's were so desperate to keep it from passing?

They know what is coming. As the qualities of this HCR become manifest in reality and not just in wingnut spin, the Republicans will pay hell trying to repeal or reverse it.

I don't think many Americans have much patience for the behavior of the teabaggers, birthers, and Republican leadership. How about Bohner screaming in the House chamber? It may take a lot of contituent service to make up for that. What about Republican representatives on the Speaker's Balcony trying to whip up the tea partiers to a frenzy when no one inside the chamber wasn't available to speak to the issue? What about the targeting and reloading talk? The vandalism? The specific threats? The Republicans may find that they will pay a high price for their boorish behavior.

GO VAROGA!!!!! The more groups against the Tea Party the better, especially republican-based groups, it is sweet to sit back and just watch the GOP implode in front of our eyes, and the fracturing of
it, piece by delicious piece, is like watching piranha eat themselves. Palin
insists that all attendees at the rallies are Tea Party activists, so whether Mac & Cheeese for Brains wants it or not, with her endorsement and assistance he is now a Tea Party candidate, and all his supporters are as well. All his "speeches" after she introduced him were pathetic, he
doesn't have a chance in hell, he's going to lose to none other than a Jack Abramhoff felanderer, another fine example of the repukican gender. It's like a mother eating her young, unbelievable. The Democrats are just steadfastly doing the work of the people, and will keep their eye on November 2-218 days until
SWEET TUESDAY!! GO DEMS!!!

14 state AG are wasting taxpayers money with frivolous lawsuits against this Health Care Reform Bill. They are arguing that the so-called "MANDATE" is unconstitutional. Here a sample of their complaint:

(CNN) -- Officials from 14 states have gone to court to block the historic overhaul of the U.S. health care system that President Obama signed into law Tuesday, arguing the law's requirement that individuals buy health insurance violates the Constitution. Thirteen of those officials filed suit in a federal court in Pensacola, Florida, minutes after Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act. The complaint calls the act an "unprecedented encroachment on the sovereignty of the states" and asks a judge to block its enforcement. "The Constitution nowhere authorizes the United States to mandate, either directly or under threat of penalty, that all citizens and legal residents have qualifying health care coverage,"the lawsuit states.'

Wrong.

In 1798, the fifth congress passed and President John Adams signed into law "An Act for the Relief of Sick and Disabled Seamen" authorizing the creation of a marine hospital service, and mandating privately employed sailors to purchase healthcare insurance.

Was President John Adams was a tyrant who took away Amercans' freedom or even worse, he was a "SOCIALIST?

I don't speak for the "Teamob" and never said that the Constitution is "perfect" either -- remember that I am the one pointing out it is not a suicide pact -- the Declaration of Independence OTOH was a suicide pact, if that helps calm you down. As for "where were you when Bush trashed it" I answered that in saying I was DEFENDING Bush (even though I don't agree that he was "trashing" it; do you think that Lincoln "trashed" it during the Civil War?)

"if unemployment drops to 7.5% and the dow is at 11,500 - teh Republicans will find themselves in an uphill battle"

What a "Merchant of Venice" conundrum the rich Republicans are in now! I think their ducats will win out over their revenge in this story though, but they will go away with about a half pound of Public flesh instead of the whole pound. And that really pisses them off. They want the whole enchilada.

But they are trapped by time. If they want to regain some of their lost wealth, or increase it, they have to allow Wall Street to flourish. AND they will have to increase job opportunities because they can't squeeze any more productivity out of their already-overworked turnips.

Some of them are wealthy enough to survive intentionally trashing the national economy to wreak revenge against The People for replacing their puppets with a populist, but most of them can;t afford to wait any more.

It should be interesting to see when those two groups of Republicans split, maybe the teaparty is that happening. The Royals v the Wealthy Merchants (magna charta, anyone)?

"I am still the only one here defended his 16 words to "lie" us into war with Iraq. Next question?"

How about a real answer. And bragging that you still believe a proven lie (no doubt you will have some very weak argument you consider irrefutable; anything is irrefutable to the intractable) doesn;t give you anymore credibility than you had before you repeated your own delusionary defense.

Please, answer my other question.

If the Constitution is really perfect in your eyes, where were you when Bush trashed it?

Where was the Teamob?

And where were the congressional Republicans who now whine so plaintively about the Constitution when Bush was trivializing it to defend his pre-emptive no-bid war that he started by lying about WMD's?

"Nine members of the Christian militia group Hutaree have been indicted on multiple charges involving an alleged plot to attack police, including seditious conspiracy and attempted use of weapons of mass destruction, the U.S. Attorney in Michigan announced this morning.

"Six Michigan residents, along with two residents of Ohio and a resident of Indiana, were indicted by a federal grand jury in Detroit on charges of seditious conspiracy, attempted use of weapons of mass destruction, teaching the use of explosive materials, and possessing a firearm during a crime of violence," according to the government's press release, which you can read in full below.

The indictment describes an alleged plot that seems inspired by weapons more associated with urban warfare in Iraq than with rural Michigan.

The Hutaree members allegedly "planned to kill an unidentified member of local law enforcement and then attack the law enforcement officers who gather in Michigan for the funeral."

The indictment continues: "According to the plan, the Hutaree would attack law enforcement vehicles during the funeral procession with Improvised Explosive Devices with Explosively Formed Projectiles, which, according to the indictment, constitute weapons of mass destruction."

That attack, in turn, would spark a more widespread Harper's Ferry-style uprising against the government, according to the "general concept of operations" described in the indictment."

Same things as to Rep. Bachmann (R-MN), whom the Dems are "targeting". Luckily, she can return fire and has several built-in advantages.

"First, the suburban Twin Cities district is solidly Republican with Sen. John McCain having won it by eight points in 2008 even as he was losing the state by 10. Second, the district is entirely covered by the somewhat costly Minneapolis-Saint Paul media market, making getting known district-wide a pricey challenge. Bachmann had more than $1 million on hand at the end of 2009 while Clark had just $389,000."

GOP pandering to right wing extremism, use of inflammatory rhetoric to characterize modest legislation, calls for arming (“Michelle Bachmann”), reloading (“Michael Steele”), and targeting (“Sarah Palin”) their political opponents are criminal actions that seek to divide our country for the benefit of a few rich individuals and corporations.

Anti Health Care reform advocate California GOP Congressman Wally Herger expressed support for right-wing terrorism. Herger was hosting a town hall meeting when Citizen Bert Stead called himself a “proud right-wing terrorist.” Herger responded, “Amen, God bless you. There is a great American.”

Follow the money that funds the so call citizen protest groups.

The primary funding sources for the Tea Party are two conservative groups: Americans for Prosperity and FreedomWorks which receive substantial funding from David Koch of Koch Industries, the largest privately-held energy company in the country, and the conservative Koch Family Foundations. Koch industries are responsible for hundreds of Oil spills spread over multiple states.

It will be more than "Six in ten believe that the bill passed by Congress will require all individuals to make changes to their health care" once companies start dropping employer-provided health care. Every premium increase from now on will be blamed on ObamaCare. Hopefully, enough voters get fed up with him by 2012!

these are people wiht tiny, primitive minds, completely incapable of comprehinding irony:

'The Tea Party movement loves to express its affection for the Constitution. The Los Angeles Times writes, “Adherence to what supporters deem to be a strict interpretation of constitutional principles is a key tenet of the tea party movement.” Yesterday’s Tea Party rally in Searchlight, NV, for instance, was filled with imagery of the Constitution. Protesters carried signs that read “I honor the Constitution” and “What about the Constitution don’t you understand?” Rally attendee Norman Halfpenny, a 77-year old retired Marine Corps veteran, said, “We need to get our Constitution back.”

In her speech at the rally, Sarah Palin of course paid homage to the Constitution. “Our vision for America is anchored in time-tested truths that the government that governs least governs best, that the Constitution provides the path to a more perfect union — it’s the Constitution,” she exclaimed. And so it’s extremely puzzling that Palin introduced this new attack line against President Obama yesterday:

In these volatile times when we are a nation at war, now more than ever is when we need a commander-in-chief, not a constitutional law professor lecturing us from a lectern.

This group or another group really need to put Olympia Snow and Susan Collins under intense pressure as punishment for standing with the radical right.

there was a time I would have voted for either of these women for president even as Republicans - I found them to be level headed and true patriots - but after what the Senate did on HC reform and their willingness to get in bed with the radical right I want the people of their states to punish them and put them on the unemployment line

As I said, the Constitution is not a suicide pact (I can give you the SUPREME COURT citation for that quote, if you still don't believe me). I thought, for sure, that there would be another 9/11 attack on the homeland, so I supported GWB's actions and did not stay silent about said support. I am still the only one here defended his 16 words to "lie" us into war with Iraq. Next question?

'Republican National Committee chairman Michael Steele evidently does not share the right’s 'disdain' for Hollywood, a commitment to conservative spending practices, or discomfort with sexuality outside of traditional marriage. The Daily Caller reports that “FEC filings suggest Steele travels in style”:

Once on the ground, FEC filings suggest, Steele travels in style. A February RNC trip to California, for example, included a $9,099 stop at the Beverly Hills Hotel, $6,596 dropped at the nearby Four Seasons, and $1,620.71 spent [update: the amount is actually $1,946.25] at Voyeur West Hollywood, a bondage-themed nightclub featuring topless women dancers imitating lesbian sex.

“There are topless ‘dancers’ acting out S&M scenes throughout the night on one of the side stages,” a rave review of Voyeur on Yelp.com describes. “There’s a half-naked girl hanging from a net across the ceiling and at one point I walked to the bathroom and pretty much just stopped dead in my tracks to watch two girls simulating oral sex in a glass case.” Although Steele’s high-flying ways have angered GOP donors, RNC communications director Doug Heye explains, “It takes money to make money.”

Reading comments from teabaggers here, the only conclusion I can draw is that you people have lost your minds.

Democrats "planned" the outbursts? You seem to have forgotten a very important fact. The presence of an African-American congressman does not force anyone to yell "N----r"!

You guys already had the hatred, bigotry and paranoia in your hearts before John Lewis walked through, and you still have it in your hearts now. It's paranoia that makes you concoct these fantasies.

Grow up and face the facts. Americans are NOT uniformly opposed to health care reform -- not even to the imperfect reform that passed. Polls are split about evenly - and, many who opposed the bill that went through actually felt it didn't go far enough!

Fox News lies to you. Stop believing them.

Posted by: jamshark70
------------
In the first place it is not clear that the N word was in fact used, maybe it is merely propaganda which of course liberals love. And what is more, even if it was said, it is hardly the position of ALL tea partiers. So why blame all tea partiers for one incident?

Secondly, while it is true that many Americans support the health bill, it is also true that somewhat more Americans oppose it. I presume you are one of the supporters, but you need to show more respect for your FELLOW CITIZENS who have different views. They have not signed up to attend a school with you as teacher! :)

My 401k is up big time - this is giving me confidence to buy a new house - unemployment is stable, albeit not good - if unemployment drops to 7.5% and the dow is at 11,500 - teh Republicans will find themselves in an uphill battle -

I think this fight against the Tea Party along with an improving economy will mean the Dems having 61 Senate Seats and holding in the house.

the Dems need to get out of this mentality of defeat and start thinking can we hit 61-63 Senate seats.

bs2004 10:58 AM asks: Where are the non-white people Tea Party members?

Answer: These racists voted for Barack Obama by 97% because he was a tribal member, and ONLY because he was a tribal member, and they don't support the Tea Parties grass-roots efforts to keep our country a Representative Republic. What they want is a Socialist/Communist Obama-run government that gives them things for nothing and where no one is responsible for anything i e a government as described by George Orwell in his book '1984'.

They voted for this incompetent even though he had never so much as run a Hot Dog stand; had had a long history of Communist, anti-white, and anti-America associations going back to his college days, and been a 20 year member and big supporter of a racist white and America--hating gang (laughably called 'church')Trinity UFCC, that was teaching and promoting their vile racist hatred and hatred for our country.
In the most recent Gallup poll, these black racists are still supporting Barack Obama by 93% only because he's a tribal member, even though he's screwed up our economy, unemployment is near 10% (and will probably stay there until he gets kicked out of office in 2012), and he's tripled the deficit that Bush had it up to in just one year. Nothing matters to these racists exept their shared skin color, so you'll never see them joining these Tea Party protests.

Thank you, Democrats and Progressives! You have officially destroyed this country.

-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-

Nah. Republicans beat them to it.

Bush and republican deregulated the financial industry and that was what brought this country down and into the mess we're in. My god, it's breathtaking how easily these wingers are duped. But victims of 24/7 propaganda are often in a dazed, easily confused that.

If the Constitution is so holy to you and yours, why didn't you protest when Bush called it "a gd piece of paper." Why didn't you rise up then? He was talking directly about the constitution, not some perverse equivocation of health care reform with the constitution?

A President literally trashes the Constitution, you are silent. Another President extends health care to millins, and suddenly that Constitution is in jeopardy?

What a fake you are Jake. Do you even realize how transparent this is?

You obviously aren't concerned about any Constitution, you are just concerned with defending your own delusions and your dying party's dying image as patriotic.

They are loyal to Corporations, not our Constitution. And you are just one of their victims, moreso even than those of us who know better. They respect us considerably more than they do you.

With Americans fighting other Americans, and China coming up fast, what hope is there for the US to retain the leadership it has enjoyed since WW2? And when the US does lose leadership, all kinds of problems which only American military and economic might kept at bay, will read their ugly heads. Liberals, stop attacking tea partiers, they are wrong about some things, but not about everything. And of course vice versa.

Reading comments from teabaggers here, the only conclusion I can draw is that you people have lost your minds.

Democrats "planned" the outbursts? You seem to have forgotten a very important fact. The presence of an African-American congressman does not force anyone to yell "N----r"!

You guys already had the hatred, bigotry and paranoia in your hearts before John Lewis walked through, and you still have it in your hearts now. It's paranoia that makes you concoct these fantasies.

Grow up and face the facts. Americans are NOT uniformly opposed to health care reform -- not even to the imperfect reform that passed. Polls are split about evenly - and, many who opposed the bill that went through actually felt it didn't go far enough!

Using words like "suicide pact" to describe health care reform is simply disingenuous.

While I think you want more-ignorant people than yourself to believe such incendiary language, I doubt you can really find a serious argument to that effect. Only the brainwashed lemmings fall for it, and it takes such extreme language to move them.

Your party committed political suicide by foisting Bush up on your own petard, and allowing him to lie us into a no-bid war for Texas profit.

Your intrepid leaders should have had the pernicious sense to at least dummy up some sort of WMD, but instead, once they had their footprint established in Iraq and they could move to control the oil revenues, they couldn't have care less about covering up the lies they told, they were already THERE.

I'm not sure candidates with Tea Party sympathies will have as much impact if elected to office as many people -- including the candidates themselves -- think.

If they run as Republicans and win, they'll head to Washington at the very bottom of the pecking order. If Republicans manage to win a majority in the House and-or Senate, the longtimers will still be largely responsible for the direction the party takes; any newcomer Tea Party candidates will quickly find they can't get much done if they don't adhere to the chain of command. And if the Democrats keep the majority, those Tea Party candidates will have even less impact -- an out-of-power segment of an out-of-power party. The only way they'll be able to make noticeable change is if the GOP manages to get a majority and the number of Tea Party candidates elected to office is so overwhelming that the Republicans are forced to adopt some of the group's principles to boost their chances of re-election in future years.

I wonder if the overall Republican leadership isn't, to some extent, counting on Tea Party candidates to not think about this; get them elected as Republicans to boost the party's numbers, then let them find out once they're in office that they don't have nearly the power they thought they'd have. The GOP will be able to trumpet itself as the party of grassroots without having to pay any attention at all to those ostensibly grassroots elements.

Just another Progressive Political Party/liberal, democracy-destroying propaganda machine:

"Democrat activists, Craig Varoga and George Rakis. In fact, this kind of thing is actually their business. A look at their website, Independent Strategies makes this indisputably clear ...

[...] It may be legal, but it certainly doesn't look so from here. The way the money moves seemlessly from 527 organization to 527 organization and then back to for profit companies, I suspect their Byzantine shell game covers more than just the tracks of big labor.

There's much more, so take the time to read it all. Most of all, be sure to catch Simpson's take-home message:
Because TheTeaPartyIsOver.org is such a clearly modest effort, we may well be needlessly giving this blatant Astroturf operation unwarranted publicity. However, the exposure of the vast, corrupt network of big labor, Party machinery and professional activists behind it has also served to place in stark relief the sleazy and duplicitous methods by which Democrats promote their phony agenda - all the while making big bucks in the process.

Yet more reasons to fire the entire lot in November.

The Democrats, now run by the far-left, are capable of and will indeed pull every sleazy Leninist tactic and trick in the book to win. Unfortunately, voter's are left with the job to cut through the sleaze and get to the truth. They surely won't get it from the mainstream media which, other than Fox, has ignored this story."http://www.hyscience.com/archives/2010/02/astroturfing_fo.php

Scum. Contributes absolutely nothing...but I guess destroying a representative republic is a worthwhile life time of work, heh?

In the last year the Dems have appeared weak - this is a good move to counter the garbage coming from teh Tea Party - an educated people are always the best to make informed decisions. I think in time the extremist and poorly reasoned positions of the Tea Party radical voices will kill the movement - I just hope the Coffee Party people stick to their guns and force meaningful change on the spending.

I also think the Dems need to target Olympia Snow and Susan Collins - these moderate Senators made themselves part of the problem and they need to see real pressure on their future

I was just thinking that it might actually be a good thing if the Tea Party was actually successful at getting politicians elected who pass their obscene, unconstitutional purity test. Why? Because then, they would be tasked with doing something they have been preaching against all this time--actually governing.

I don't think it would take very long for the public to get a bellyful of them. Particularly in light of a Quinnipiac poll shown on MSNBC this morning showing that over two thirds of the American people believe that wealthier Americans should pay more in taxes. Something the Tea Party considers anathema!

Are we SURE this is a Democratic group fighting tea parties? Consider this quote from your article:

" While Varoga has yet to identify his targeted races, the first real test of the power of the tea party movement will come May 18 in Kentucky where ophthalmologist Rand Paul, a favorite of the tea party crowd, will face off against Secretary of State Trey Grayson who has the support -- whether public or implicit -- of the vast majority of establishment Republicans in Kentucky and nationally.

A victory by Paul would give further legitimacy to the power of the Tea Party movement -- and could potentially endanger other Republican incumbents or quasi incumbents like Grayson. It could also jeopardize Republicans' chances of picking up a bundle of seats in the House and Senate this fall. "

If the tea parties would hurt Republicans, why would a Democratic group be fighting them in the PRIMARIES? And why choose to support Cheney's endorsed candidate Grayson against someone like Rand Paul?

These old Tea Party hags are vicious and love to get in your face. And they all seem to have anger issues. Did you notice the high number of those hate calls for democratic legislators who voted for the health bill came from these sputtering, vulgar, foul mouthed old hags who when you pin them down don't really know their arse from a hole in the ground.

Why the media wastes so much print and air space on these low life bugs escapes me. They have no ideas other that the sappy, overly romanticized claptrap they pick up from badly written, poorly researched conspiracy novels and from farfetched theories offered up by the likes of such sterling scholars as Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck.

These people have no business stinking up our living rooms with this foul gobbledygook they are peddling.

On the polls about approval/disapproval of POTUS' handling of health care and approval/disapproval of the bill itself, is there any indication what percentage of those on the disapproval side disapprove because they think the president and/or the bill doesn't go far enough? I know that most of those who wanted more than we got accept the reality of the compromise but there are some who are upset that POTUS/the Democratic party caved in.

Here is a report to March 2010 and the estimates for debt in 2019 are listed at 82% of GDP. I have to admit my initial source was from Real Politics and that article was linked to Washington Times (I am not sure where the 2020 numbers came from). I think I got caught citing a journalistic article as coming from the source (it may exist I just can’t find it). However, if the 2019 is listed as 82% of GDP it’s not a far stretch to say that by 2020 the debt will be higher given its present trajectory.

I totally agree with your assessment that the R are just as disingenuous in cutting the deficits. However, it was D who last talked of irresponsibility of the R in terms of debt and it was Obama who promised to be responsible. Empty promises indeed.

Greatgrandmasue, it really gets your stinking thong in a knot that a handsome, young, intelligent African American kicked your old grandpa McCain's hoary, gray backside in the election doesn't it? And he didn't need a squad of goon like GOP lawyers to try and overturn the result by scurrying to the Supreme Court sniveling about that office belongs to rich old white fahts who got there because daddy bought the office for him.

I notice old teabag hags like greatgrandmahause lovvve to talk big. They strut around like gunslingers looking for the biggest gun to take on. They have a perpetual chip on their shoulder and just like the old gunslingers of yore, they are pretty much cowards. Try kicking my a## grandma and I will send both your and your beer swilling, NRA-loving, jackbooted militia grandpa to that great Tea Party hospital in Yahoosville, USA!

I'm sorry but I have to question the character, sanity and education of anyone who supports Michelle Bachmann. Ms. Bachmann has shown herself to be one of the most bizarre, extreme members of the House. In her speeches she resorts to slanderous calumnies against President Obama that she knows full well are untrue.

She may be popular with the beer bellies and rednecks in the rural district she represents but in America at large, she is regarded as a dumb hick and a moron.

This old tea bag plans to kick coffee bean a$$. The Tea Party is about taxes.

You may think only the rich (2%) will pay for Obama's folly but only the poor get a free pass under his plan. The rest of us will hold more than one job to make ends meet before he is finished with his socialist agenda.

I don't see the Tea Party's ideas as much "dangerous" as they are just plain stupid and incomprehensible. For example, at Tea Party rallies, all I hear is a hash of overgeneralized principles that nobody can really argue with since they lack even a scintilla of specificity. Nobody has any idea of what "limited government" actually means. And who can argue with "liberty" and "freedom" unless you can document just how at the present time the federal government is infringing on such in any way other than making you participate in the society who's services and facilities you benefit from every day.

It almost seems to me that the Tea Party are no different from the old Patrick Henry anarchists at our Founding who rebelled against George Washington's principle plea for a Constitutional Convention. Henry and his classless followers were quite content with the old Articles of Confederation--a miserably failed experiment that mimics modern calls for government under Tenth Amendment principles, which is essentially no federal government at all.

mark_in_austin writes
"Does anyone know if Ms. Bachmann remains popular in her CD? I assume Ms. Clark represents an overlapping state senatorial district. How coextensive is her SSD with the CD? What are the important variables?"

Rep Bachmann enjoys considerable popularity in her district. Rep Clark represents a subset of that district in the MN Legislature, primarily the city of St Cloud, whereas MN-6 is anchored by St Cloud in the west, and curves around the northern edge of the twin cities metro, including some suburbs but mostly is made up of exurban / rural areas.

I suspect that winning MN-6 will be something of a phyrric victory anyway, as that district is probably the most likely to be redistricted out of existence, should MN lose a seat after the census (at last report, we're on the bubble).

My take away from teabaggers is that if you disagree with them, or rather if they disagree with you (there's a difference), then they might shoot you with one of their guns.

Teabaggers have an image problem among moderates, middle-of-the-roaders and Democrats. In a funny way they remind me of the radical left of the late 60s and early 70s. THAT GROUP was so "effective", it assured the election of Richard Nixon in 1968 and his re-election in 1972.

I think President Obama is doing a good job, regardless of what Teabaggers, Beck, Rush and those yay-hoos at FOX say.

sliowa1, assuming your numbers are well sourced, how much of the debt rise is due to the impending disaster of medicare/medicaid? I am guessing from previous analyses that i have read that neither the GWB deficits nor the BHO projected deficits are big players next to m/m, which Congress has repeatedly kicked down the road. If you know the comparative numbers or have a good link, I would be very appreciative, although the nature of this medium would only allow me to post a "thank you".

"The truth is almost no politicians are honest about what's needed. Republicans talk a good game now on deficits but were wildly irresponsible while they were in control. Democrats aren't about to give them an opening by raising their hands first to propose unpopular spending cuts or tax hikes."

SavingGrace writes
""dangerous" tea party ideas?!?!?
I'm an ordinary person, and the people I've met at Tea Party events are pretty much like me. Our "dangerous" ideas include: holding politicians accountable for their actions; expecting honesty and integrity from politicians; forcing the Federal government to restrain spending and stop burdening our children's futures with untenable debt."

SavingGrace - there are certainly many reasonable people that self-identify as 'tea party' members or supporters. The problem is that there are also some unreasonable people that call themselves tea partiers - people that suggest vandalism is an appropriate way to 'punish' lawmakers for supporting the health care reform bill, for instance.

I also find the hyperbole a little reckless. I don't think its appropriate to claim the President is a social-commun-totalitarian-fasc-terror-ist and talk about revolution. I think there are people who don't understand the difference between words and deeds; who might be willing to use violent means to promote their views. That is very dangerous, in my view. In our system of government, we use elections to determine whom will be our representatives. When our 'side' loses, we have to wait for the next round of elections, and try again. To the extent that tea people are working to promote specific candidates, and specific ideologies - great. Lets have that debate as a country. But for the ones promoting revolution and hinting at overthrow, I'd just as soon see them all locked up.

re: #5. Does anyone know if Ms. Bachmann remains popular in her CD? I assume Ms. Clark represents an overlapping state senatorial district. How coextensive is her SSD with the CD? What are the important variables?

I think we have a couple of Minnesotan posters who may know, and will have much more to add.

I think the CBO’s numbers on the deficit will be enough to spark outrage. CBO estimates that debt will rise to 90% GDP by 2020 (contrast to 2008 in which we had 40% GDP). We will join the ranks of the PIIGS (Portugal, Italy, Ireland, Greece, and Spain) in Europe (not a great group to be associated with). I personally do not want to see the outrage and this outrage will not be with R alone.

"dangerous" tea party ideas?!?!?
I'm an ordinary person, and the people I've met at Tea Party events are pretty much like me. Our "dangerous" ideas include: holding politicians accountable for their actions; expecting honesty and integrity from politicians; forcing the Federal government to restrain spending and stop burdening our children's futures with untenable debt.
We should all be so "dangerous."

To the best of my knowledge there are no Tea Party Candidates. Moreover, there has not been a Tea Party Convention. I don't believe the Tea Party is a conventional party, so much as it's an activist organization.

Anyone who thinks that the democrats did not PLAN OUT the attacks on the Tea Party Movement last week is simply not looking.

First, you had democratic Congressmen going out into a hostile rally -

Congressmen RARELY go to rallies in Washington - even friendly rallies - you never see Congressmen going into a hostile crowd - THE DEMOCRATS PLANNED ON PROVOKING THE CROWD LAST WEEK FOR POLITICAL GAIN.

The problem ended up that the democrats had little to go on - they were hoping to provoke something for the cameras - and virtually nothing happened - NOTHING WAS ON TAPE.

But the DEMOCRATIC PR MACHINE OF LIES WENT INTO HIGH GEAR ANYWAY. The democrats HAD TO MAKE THE FALSE CHARGE OF RACISM AGAINST EVERYONE WHO HAD POLICY DIFFERENCES.

These democrats who do this are violating the BASIC PREMISES OF OUR DEMOCRACY.

These democrats really ARE NOT AMERICANS - THEY DO NOT BELIEVE IN THE PROPER FUNCTIONING OF OUR GOVERNMENT.

These democrats do not believe in FREEDOM - they do not believe in FREEDOM OF SPEECH - they are seeking to intimidate their opponents.

Take a look at how the democratic protestors used to treat Bush - there is violence at democratic protests - the world bank and the seattle protests - and at the GOP conventions.

The Tea Party Movement is TAME compared to the democratic violent protests.

LAST WEEK THE DEMOCRATIC PR MACHINE FED YOU A BUNCH OF LIES - IT IS A COMPLETE JOKE - AND IT IS UNAMERICAN.

If the Ds can pull off deficit reducing economic growth, the Republican rage bubble pops.

Confidence is political gold. That was the one thing I'll give Ronald Reagan, he was a great cheerleader, he instilled confidence. Bush/Cheney: no, just fear. Obama? Well, he gets that, he is trying, though it does not come naturally. Is it morning in America yet?

"Consumer spending rose for the fifth consecutive month in February, matching economists' expectations, according to a new government report. At the end of the week, investors will get the Labor Department's monthly employment report, which is expected to show employers added jobs this month.

Jobs and the strength of the consumer [spending] are considered keys to a strong, sustained economic recovery...investors are turning their attention this week to a bevy of economic reports that are expected to show continued improvement in the nation's economy."

Last year the tea party was fringe radicals..only to be ignored by the MSM and the DNC.. what happened.. did someone wake up and the smell the discontent.

This isn't about Fox or right/left.. this is about trying to stop a hijacking of the legislative process and abuses by the administration.. fasten your seat belt Mr. President.. you are in for the ride of your political life. And yes, the GOP started this mess.. I already know this.

I remember about a month ago reading for one day about some "coffee sippers" or something like that. This group had registered thousands of people and they were to compete with the "Tea Party". That is the only article I've seen about them, they haven't been in the news since as far as I've seen. Good luck changing the meaning of American patriotism to socialism.

Craig and Mike Rice are American political consultants who specialize in opposition research based on open-source methods covered by the Freedom of Information Act. Rice has previously directed research for the California Democratic Party and for the gubernatorial nomination of Kathleen Brown. Craig Varoga is a former aide to House Majority Leader Harry Reid. Rice was named Opposition Researcher of the Year in 2008 by the American Association of Political Consultants.

For the record, left-wing political violence has always been around and more recent than just the Weatherman and Black Liberation movements (abortion is also fairly "violent" toward unborn children). The FBI is currently investigating 6 shots fired outside Ft. Bliss at a military housing unit and bricks thrown through a local GOP headquarters. So, it's not just right-wing wackos. What about the last several GOP Conventions:

Rubio probably won the debate among the people they were trying to get - the red meat Republicans. Crist's message has always been more centrist which doesn't help him when the name of the game is to distance yourself from Obama. He would definitely have fared better if this were a general election. He went after Rubio on his own ethical issues, but I don't think that stuck as Rubio was able to turn it back onto him. The moderator didn't really seem interested in steering the discussion that way either. I didn't see the whole thing, but that's the impression I got.